Edge-finishing machine



July 27 1926.

J. GOULDBOURN EDGE FINISHING MACHINE Filed June 12, 1923 Amen/r05 Patented July 27, 1926'.

UNlTED STATE JOSEPH GOULDBOIJBN, OF LEICESTER, ENGLAND, ASSIGNOR TO UNITED SHOE MA- GI-IINERY CORPORATION, OF PATEl'tSON, NEVV' JERSEY, A CORPORATION OF NEW JERSEY.

Application filed June 12, 1923, Serial No.

This invention relates to machines for use in the manufacture of boots and shoes and is illustrated herein as embodied in a machine employing heat in the operation of finishing the edge of a piece of upper leather.

In machines of this type the leather is commonly fed, flesh-side uppermost, over a table or support and beneath a hot tool which is mounted so as to be lifted by the leading end of the work and to bear yieldingly upon the work, the action of the tool being to sear and shrink the flesh side of the margin and thereby to cause the grain side to curl toward the flesh side so that the finished edge presents a surface which is all grain. In such machines there is sometimes a tendency for thesearing and shrinking to be excessive at the leading end of the work where the tool rides up on it, and this undesirable effect is accentuated when two edges, which are finished by this treatment, meet. If, for example, the piece whose edges are to be finished has a sharp corner where two of its edges meet and the operation must be started and ended at this cor- 1 ner, the corner receives two heat treatments, one at the leading end of one edge (considered with respect to the direction of feed movement) and another at the trailing end of the other edge; and, in such case, the corner may lose much of the sharp character of its outline and become objectionably rounded.

According to one feature of the present invention, means operated by the work as it is fed are provided for determining the locality on the work at which the tool shall begin to operate. In the illustrative ma chine a roll which normally rests upon the work support is located in the path of feed movement of the work and is so connected with the tool that the tool is held in raised,

tool descends upon the work and continues in that operative position while the remaining portion of the edge of the work is fed past it. The roll is so located that the leadend of the work is fed to or past the tool before it reaches the roll, said roll being adjustable to vary its distance from the tool. \Vith this construction the tool does not ride up on the work at all; and the tool may be rendered operative exactly at the leading end of the work or at a selected EDGE-FINISHING- IMACHINE.

$44,929, and in Great Britain July 8, 1922.

distance from said end. In the case, referred to above, of, a plece of work having two edges which meet in a sharp corner 1t is thus possible to treat the edge without going over the extreme corner more than once.

This and other features of the invention including certain details of construction and combinations of parts will be described as embodied in an illustrative machine and pointed out in the appended claims.

Referring now to the accompanying drawings,

Figure 1 is an end elevation of a portion of a machine in which the present invention is embodied, showing the parts in workreceiving position;

Fig. 2 is a side elevation, partly in section, of the parts shown in Fig. l; and

Fig. 8 shows, on an enlarged scale, the positions of some of the parts shown in Fig. 1 when operating on a work piece.

The invention is shown as embodied in a machine of the type of that of British Patent No. 193,936; and before proceeding to describe what is new, the construction which is common to the patented machine and that of the present application will be briefly indicated. The machine has a work table or support 1 over which the leather or other sheet material 2 is fed (from right to left as viewed in Fig. 1) by feeding members 3 and 4, the work being held down upon the table by an idle presser wheel 5. These members serve to feed the work over the table with its edge in engagement with a plow or turning post 6, and its extreme upper margin in engagement with a hot searing or shrinking tool 7 which shrinks the upper side of the margin of the work and causes the other side to curl toward the shrunken side. After the edge of the work, thus shrunken and curled, has been fed past the tool 7 it is operated upon by aha-miner, not shown, which increases the curl. The work operated upon is commonly a piece of leather which is fed flesh-side up; and the result of the operation is to produce a finished edge which presents a smooth grain surface. The tool 7 is mounted at the outer end of an overhanging arm 8 pivoted about an axis, not shown, located at one side of and extending parallel to the line of feed. This arm tends at all times to swing downwardly about the pivot so that the tool is urged at all times toward the support. When no work is in the machine the tool is close to the support, being held in that position by a stop, not shown, which resists the weight of the pivoted arm. When a piece of work is fed along the support, the tool rides up on the leading end of the piece and rests upon the piece during the whole teed movement of the piece until the trailend of the piece passes from beneath the tool. As thus far described, the illustrative machine is" on may be substantially like the patented machine, and no further detailed description of the structure common to the two machines will be given.

In order normally to hold the tool 7 above the table a distance greater than the thickness of thework, and'to permit the tool to descend upon the work at the desired time, a roll 9 is provided the axis of which is substantially perpendicular to the direction of feed movement o'ftl'ie work, the roll being so locatedthat it will roll up on the work when the work is fedbeneath it. The roll 9 is carried in a, bracket 10 adjustably fixed to a member 11 by a screw 12 passingthroug'h a slot 13 in the member. The brac get lOhas formed on its upper. face a tongue 14- whi'ch enters a groove 15 in the member-l1. The screw. and slot connection provides means for adjusting the bracket 10 and roll 9 toward or fromtie searing tool 7 lateraliy ofthe line of feed and parallel to the plane of the work. The member 11 is adjustably fired'to a bar 16 by a screw 17 passing througha slot 18 in the bar. The bar 16 is adjustably fixed at its upper end to a bracket 19v by a screw 20 passing through, a slot 21 in the bar. The screws 17, 2O and slots 18, 21 permit of vertical adjustment of the bracket 10 and roll 9 to vary the. height above the work of'the searing tool 7 when the roll 9" is holding thearin 8 in raised. position. The bracket 19 is fixed to a rod 22, which is mounted in the arm 8, by a screw 23 passing through a slot 24; in the bracket 19 so as to permit adjustment of the roll 9 toward or from the searing too-l Talong theline or feed.

The spindle E25 ofthe roll Sis retained by a screw 26 and washer 27in anupwardly curved guide slot or bearing 28 in; the

bracket 10 so that when the work is fed against the roll 9 as said roll rests upon the table, the roll spindle 25'will be pushed back (perpendicularly of its axis) along the gradually rising guite 28; and the bracket 10, arm 8 andtool 7 will descend until the tool bears upon the work. The guide 28 has formed in it a recess 29 which receives the spindle 25 when the arm 8 is raised and the roll 9, rests upon the table 1 so as to prevent the roll spindle from beii'igg pushed'along theguide merelyby the downward thrust upon it of the arm or from dicated in Fig. 3, according to the setting. oi the roll bracket 10 along the line of feed. The device is autoii'iatically reset when the arm 8 is lifted at the end of an operation, since the roll, spindle 25 then falls back to the-lowest point oi the curved guide, and the recess 29 and roll 9 reassume the mutualrelationship in which the former more orv less locks the latter against rearward movement under, mere pressure or the arm. the arm 8 is againlowered, the roll 9 rest ing on the table 1 holds the tool 7 clear of the next work piece until the latter has adrancedto the desired position.

Having thus lesc ribed my invention, what, I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States is l. A machine ofthe class describedh'aw ing', in combination, awork support, a tool between which and the support thework is fed, said tool being urged at all times toward the support into position to engage the,

work, a member lbcated in the path oif 'i eed movement or the work and adapted, when no work is being operated upon, to hold the tool in raised position, and connections between the member and tool such that movement of the member by the, work permits the tool to fall. I

2. A; machine of the class described hav-' ing, in combination, a work supporting member and an operating member, connections between said members such that. one

member tends at all times to approach the other, means for, feedingtheworkbetweefr them, and a controller connected with one member and adapted'iirst to contact with the other member to hold the two members spaced apart, distance greater than the thickness Of the work and then to contact with and be moved by-the work to' permit the work to be operatedupon.

3. A machine ot'theclass described having, in combination, a work supporting member and an operating member, connections between said members such that one member tends at all times to approach the other, ior feeding the work between them, and a controller located'behind the operating memberconsidered in the direction otteed movement oi the work, said controller being connected with one member andadapted first to contact with the downward Consequently, whenv other member to hold the two members spaced apart a distance greater than the thickness of the work and then to contact with and be moved by the work to permit the work to be operated upon.

4. A machine of the class described having, in combination, a work support, a tool movable toward and from the support, means for feeding the work over the support, a member connected with the tool and having a guideway included upwardly from the support in the direction of the feed movement and a roll located in the path of feed movement and having its axis mounted in said guideway.

5. A machine of the class described hav-- ing, in combination, a work support, a tool movable toward and from the support, means for feeding the work over the support, a member connected with the tool and having a guideway inclined upwardly from the support in the direction of the feed movement and provided at its lower end with an upwardly extending recess, and a roll located in the path of feed movement and having its axis mounted in said guideway and normally located in said recess.

6. A machine of the class described having, in combination, a work support, a tool movable toward and from said support, means for feeding the work over the sup port, a member connected with the tool and having a guideway inclined upwardly from the support in the direction of feed movement, and a roll having its axis mounted in the guideway, the lowest portion of the roll extending normally below the level of the lowest portion of the tool in position to be engaged by the leading end of the work as it is fed.

7. A machine of the class described having, in combination, a work support, a tool movable toward and from said support, means for feeding the work over the support, a member connected with the tool and having a guideway inclined upwardly from the support in the direction of feed movement, a roll having its axis mounted in the guideway, the lowest portion of the roll extending normally below the level of the lowest portion of the tool in position to be engaged by the leading end of the work as it is fed, and means whereby the member having the guideway may be adjusted toward and from the tool substantially in the line of feed.

8. A machine of the class described having, in combination, a work support, a tool movable toward and from said support, means for feeding the work over the support, a member connected with the tool and having a guideway inclined upwardly from the support in the direction of feed movement, a roll having its axis mounted in the guideway, the lowest portion of the roll extending normally below the level of the low est portion of the tool in position to be en gaged by the leading end of the work as it is fed, and means whereby the member having the guideway may be adjusted toward and from the work support.

9. A machine of the class described havmovable toward and from said support, means for feeding the work over the support, a member connected with the tool and having a guideway inclined upwardly from the support in the direction of feed movement, a roll having its axis mounted in the guideway, the lowest portion of the roll extending normally below the level of the lowest portion of the tool in position to be engaged by the leading end of the work as it is fed, and means whereby the member having the guideway may be adjusted in a direction substantially transverse to the line of feed.

10. A machine for finishing the edge of a piece of work having, in combination, a work support, a shrinking tool, means for feeding the work between the tool and the support in such manner that its margin is acted upon by the tool and means actuated by the work for causing the operation of the tool to begin at a point spaced from the leading end of the work.

11. A machine for finishing the edge of a piece of work having, in combination, a work support, a shrinking tool, means for feeding the work between the tool and the support in such manner that its margin is acted upon by the tool and a member located in the path of feed movement of the work for normally holding the tool in in operative position, said member being movable by the work to cause the tool to be moved into operative position.

12. A machine for finishing the edge of a piece of work having, in combination, a work support, a shrinking tool, means for feeding the work between the tool and the support, a member located in the path of feed movement of the work for normally holding the tool in inoperative position, said member being movable by the wor: to cause the tool to be moved into operative position, and means whereby the member may be adjusted to vary the extent of the work which will be fed past the tool before the tool is moved into operative position.

13. A machine for finishing the edge of a piece of work having, in combination, a work supporting member and a searing member, connections between said members such that one member tends at all times to approach the other, means for feeding the work, and a controller connected with one member and adapted to contact first with the other member and then with the work in combination, a work support, a tool for predetermining; the locality on the Work at which the finishing member begins to operate.

14-. A machine for finishing the edge of a piece of work having", in combination, a Work supporting. member and a searing member, connections between said members such that one member tends at all times to approach the other, means for feeding the work, Q. controller connected with one memben and adapted to Contact first with the other member and then with the work for predetermining the locality on the work at which the finishing; member begins to operate, and means whereby the controller may be adjusted to vary the predetermined 10- celity.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification.

JOSEPH GOULDBOURN.

Certificate of Gorrection.

It is hereby certified that in Letters Patent No. 1,593,? 19, granted July 27, 1926, upon the application of Joseph Gouldbourn, of Leicester, England, for an improvement in Edge-Finishing Machines, an error appears in the printed specification requiring correction as follows: Page 3, line 11, claim 4, for the word included read inclined," and that the said Letters Patent should be read With this correction therein that the same may conform to the record of the case in the Patent Oflice.

Signed and sealed this 14th day of December, A. D. 1926.

[SEAL] M. J. MOORE,

' Acting Gammz'ssioner of Patents. 

